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Fairchild GATM team earns command-level Duckworth Award

  • Published
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --  The Global Air Traffic Management Team, 92nd Operations Group, Fairchild AFB, Wash., was recently named Air Mobility Command's nominee for the 2003 Colonel Joseph B. Duckworth U.S. Air Force Instrument Award.

According to the award nomination package, the GATM team was instrumental in the development and testing of a $1.2 billion program to improve KC-135 aircraft capabilities by integrating GATM-capable systems into the aircraft. The modifications of the KC-135 aircraft will allow the Air Force to operate the aircraft on the most efficient routes and altitudes.

The Fairchild team identified system improvements that reduced database loading times by 70 percent. They also built the first comprehensive academic and aircraft training program for the Air Force that will be used until the KC-135 simulator is modified.

Additionally, the team completed a comprehensive test program and flew the first operational mission with a GATM-modified aircraft. The team improved the aircraft modification program, applied innovative thinking to improved aircrew ergonomics, and ultimately greatly improved the Air Force's air refueling mission.